[RavenAvi]

Originally Posted by Geo

I have read a couple of owner's comments which says cruise control actually reduces FE on Indian roads. We usually don't have long stretches of level roads. So the cruise control actually consumes more fuel in adjusting acceleration to maintain constant speed over roads which aren't level. Manual acceleration gives better FE seems to be the consensus.

The linear, smooth and tractable nature of the i-DTEC, combined with the expressways' flat tarmacs, will ensure you get excellent fuel economy, if the Cruise Control is used wisely. That is one of the strong points of the City diesel - it's excellent pairing with the Cruise Control function.

For the petrol i-VTEC, however, I agree that it needs manual guiding to give out the best Fuel Economy. 3rd-gen owners will vouch for this - many hardly used the Cruise Control on their cars. My Pegasus used to constantly return 19-20 kmpl on the highway, with a very light foot on the accelerator, 80-85 kmph in the 5th gear.

I myself don't use the Cruise Control, except for the 6th gear at speeds of 80-90 kmph, and on flat roads. Thankfully the routes through which I have driven my Empress till now have minimal turns and twists. Of course, it is a strict no-no when roads have any sort of undulations - up, down, twisties, etc.

[vsrivatsa]

Originally Posted by Geo

I have read a couple of owner's comments which says cruise control actually reduces FE on Indian roads. We usually don't have long stretches of level roads. So the cruise control actually consumes more fuel in adjusting acceleration to maintain constant speed over roads which aren't level. Manual acceleration gives better FE seems to be the consensus.

Geo,
I would agree with that assessment about Manual Mode vs Cruise Control but as RavenAvi has pointed out it depends whether the roads are flat etc. But, yes the Cruise Control accelerates more aggressively than I would do if done manually when I resume the Cruise Mode from possibly a lower speed of 60 kmph and have the Cruise set at 80 kmph.

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

I myself don't use the Cruise Control, except for the 6th gear at speeds of 80-90 kmph, and on flat roads. Thankfully the routes through which I have driven my Empress till now have minimal turns and twists. Of course, it is a strict no-no when roads have any sort of undulations - up, down, twisties, etc.

RavenAvi,
Agreed , when I use the Cruise Control at speeds higher than 80, I rest my foot in the ready to brake mode rather than rest on the floor.

[DoctorKK]

I must congratulate u vsrivatsa for starting such a wonderful thread and keeping it updated!! This is what exactly I was looking for. I am in the same boat as u were some months back confused between the Verna and the City. After reading ur thread in detail I am definitely getting inclined towards the city. Some confusions however remain
- My budget is around 10-11 lacs, City V is a bit too expensive for me and SV bit under featured ( I would love to hv alloys,parking camera etc)
- My monthly driving is around 600-800 Kms,going for a petrol City would be a good option as it would fit my budget as well but the mileage would be a issue. Does anyone have any info regarding the mileage of petrol variant? Diesel giving around 25-30 is very lucrative!!
- The other option would be a diesel Verna Sx which after all discounts would be a good offering but will that be a wise choice now that City is around?
Can u pls give your views regarding these?


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[harry10]

Originally Posted by DoctorKK

I must congratulate u vsrivatsa for starting such a wonderful thread and keeping it updated!! This is what exactly I was looking for. I am in the same boat as u were some months back confused between the Verna and the City. After reading ur thread in detail I am definitely getting inclined towards the city. Some confusions however remain
- My budget is around 10-11 lacs, City V is a bit too expensive for me and SV bit under featured ( I would love to hv alloys,parking camera etc)
- My monthly driving is around 600-800 Kms,going for a petrol City would be a good option as it would fit my budget as well but the mileage would be a issue. Does anyone have any info regarding the mileage of petrol variant? Diesel giving around 25-30 is very lucrative!!
- The other option would be a diesel Verna Sx which after all discounts would be a good offering but will that be a wise choice now that City is around?
Can u pls give your views regarding these?

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Let me try to give some answers.
1. V has a waiting period of 3+ months at most place. You can get SV and install camera and alloys from Honda itself or from after market. The only useful thing missed which we can't get from outside is electric closing orvm.

2. I am following all the petrol threads too. As per that mileage will be between 10-13 within city depending on your driving habits.

3. I drove Verna and didn't like it. Ya, the power is more but the handling is bad and it scraped twice on speed breakers.

I will suggest take a TD of both, specially on bad roads and then make your mind.
Cheers.

[vsrivatsa]

Originally Posted by DoctorKK

I must congratulate u vsrivatsa for starting such a wonderful thread and keeping it updated!!

Thank You! Happy to know that you found it useful.

Originally Posted by DoctorKK

. Some confusions however remain
- My budget is around 10-11 lacs, City V is a bit too expensive for me and SV bit under featured ( I would love to hv alloys,parking camera etc)
- My monthly driving is around 600-800 Kms,going for a petrol City would be a good option as it would fit my budget as well but the mileage would be a issue. Does anyone have any info regarding the mileage of petrol variant? Diesel giving around 25-30 is very lucrative!!
- The other option would be a diesel Verna Sx which after all discounts would be a good offering but will that be a wise choice now that City is around?
Can u pls give your views regarding these?

SV is definitely under featured w.r.t. to the features - also Honda Dealership threatens to void the warranty for any after market fitments. If you buy from Honda its usually a expensive transaction since they don't buy back any of the equipment that they already fitted.

Also, From the other thread it appears that the soft suspension issue is still not fully solved on the Verna. My other reason for not going for the Verna was that my Accent CRDi engine developed problems at about 98,000 kms. So from that experience I kind of lost faith on the engine life of Hyundai cars as compared to the Japanese engines.

You can refer to the mileage numbers quoted by harry10 to see if that sounds favorable to you

Originally Posted by harry10

Let me try to give some answers.
1. V has a waiting period of 3+ months at most place. You can get SV and install camera and alloys from Honda itself or from after market. The only useful thing missed which we can't get from outside is electric closing orvm.

The other point from the reviews of others is that the Bluetooth telephony on the SV variant is flawed and does not work well as the Microphone is positioned on the ICE itself rather than at the roof like on the V and VX.

[DoctorKK]

Thank you harry10 and srivatsa for the wonderful piece of advice. I was also thinking of the SV variant as an option. Frankly speaking I am kind of stretching myself for buying my dream car. I have a Swift petrol which burns my pocket like anything. My wife will be joining duties after her maternity leave and so I'll require another car anyways. I don't like the concept of a compact sedan( though this segment fits perfectly in my budget!!)
I really want to buy a sedan and I know it won't be easy to change after every three yrs,so trying to get the best possible options presently available and coz am already stretching my budget,even a few thousand Rs. seem a lot to me now :-) ( with ref to SV and V)
I called the Honda dealer here in trivandrum and he told SV Diesel would be 11.04 on road and after a bit of convincing,he promised some discount as well!!.( other dealer in trivandrum said a straight no!!)
He told that original honda alloys may be fitted later by them at 7000/- per wheel. Reverse parking camera would cost another 11000/- May be if I buy these stuff from them,they won't coz issues with warranty. Waiting for V variant is 3+ months and SV he promised within 3 months. Planning to take a test drive and then decide!!
One more thing if u could guide me. What finance options would be good? Any idea which bank would give a good deal?


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[vsrivatsa]

Originally Posted by DoctorKK

I called the Honda dealer here in trivandrum and he told SV Diesel would be 11.04 on road and after a bit of convincing,he promised some discount as well!!.( other dealer in trivandrum said a straight no!!)

Its surprising to hear of discounts given that the new City is selling like anything. Its been selling @7000+ units per month since launch every month.
I would say any discount is a Super Deal

Originally Posted by DoctorKK

He told that original honda alloys may be fitted later by them at 7000/- per wheel. Reverse parking camera would cost another 11000/- May be if I buy these stuff from them,they won't coz issues with warranty. Waiting for V variant is 3+ months and SV he promised within 3 months. Planning to take a test drive and then decide!!

Sounds like a good option. Remember that even on the V Variant, Honda gives only 4 Alloys and the Spare is a dud! Yes, if you get it from Honda there will not be any warranty issues. If you go for just the reverse sound sensors you would get that for lesser than the 11,000 for the camera. In my opinion, the warranty void threat is more to force customers to buy accessories from the dealer. I think the after market technicians are proficient enough to install stuff. But yes, there is a risk with that approach and it depends on each individual if they want to take that risk or not. For that matter, I upsized the tyres from the stock MRF ones to 195/60R15 XM2s and that is also something the dealers never encouraged.

Originally Posted by DoctorKK

One more thing if u could guide me. What finance options would be good? Any idea which bank would give a good deal?

I went with State Bank of India. My reasons were as below:

1. They gave the longest tenure in terms of 7 year option
2. No fine on preclosure
3. I am able to make a pre-payment online directly from my SBI SB Account and it does not involve any paperwork.
4. Any number of pre-payments in the same month, every month as needed at whatever internal one wants.

It does take longer to process and they are strict with every document that they ask for but in the end I feel it was worth it. I have been able to move any extra cash at my convenience to make additional payments to the loan.

Good Luck with the test drive, hope you get the inputs to make the decision.

[DoctorKK]

As far as the discount goes,this dealer is a new one who just started recently,that may be one reason. Moreover he just promised to do his best. I'll hv to see what I can get out of him!! Compared to this,he was ready to give lots of discounts for Amaze and a ready delivery as well with the color of choice!! I guess sales of city have affected Amaze as well.
On the contrary, I called Hyundai showroom and the guy there offered all types of discounts from corporate to dealer to loyalty and still promised to do more when I insisted!! Just shows what the City has done to the competition!
The reverse sensors the Honda guy told me were for 4000/- Camera costs 11000/-
SBI even I guess is the safest option with no hidden charges and no prepayment penalties.
Thanks for your info,this thread has been a lifesaver!!


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[anilagdr]

Originally Posted by vsrivatsa

Its surprising to hear of discounts given that the new City is selling like anything. Its been selling @7000+ units per month since launch every month.

That's right, I couldn't get any discount offer for the iDtec VMT from any of the dealers I visited in Kochi, Kottayam, Trivandrum or Bangalore.

I went with State Bank of India. My reasons were as below:

1. They gave the longest tenure in terms of 7 year option
2. No fine on preclosure
3. I am able to make a pre-payment online directly from my SBI SB Account and it does not involve any paperwork.
4. Any number of pre-payments in the same month, every month as needed at whatever interval one wants.

Me too visited SBI but ultimately I picked Canara Bank with all the above advantages plus

5. The interest rate was marginally lower
6. The documents required were fewer
7. The processing is super fast.

[harry10]

Originally Posted by DoctorKK

As far as the discount goes,this dealer is a new one who just started recently,that may be one reason. Moreover he just promised to do his best. I'll hv to see what I can get out of him!! Compared to this,he was ready to give lots of discounts for Amaze and a ready delivery as well with the color of choice!! I guess sales of city have affected Amaze as well.
On the contrary, I called Hyundai showroom and the guy there offered all types of discounts from corporate to dealer to loyalty and still promised to do more when I insisted!! Just shows what the City has done to the competition!
The reverse sensors the Honda guy told me were for 4000/- Camera costs 11000/-
SBI even I guess is the safest option with no hidden charges and no prepayment penalties.
Thanks for your info,this thread has been a lifesaver!!

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After consultation with few people who had used both sensors and camera I am getting only the sensors installed as they should be sufficient. Costing me 4500 here.
Get alloys from outside. In 20k you will get very good ones.
We went with Hdfc as my dad has a savings account there. Getting all the benefits mentioned below + low interest rate in comparison to all other banks. Imo you should try to get a good deal from the bank in which you already have an account. Process is fast and hassle free.

[neel911]

Originally Posted by harry10

After consultation with few people who had used both sensors and camera I am getting only the sensors installed as they should be sufficient. Costing me 4500 here.

I second. I've had body coloured sensors installed from Honda Genuine Accessory List on my SV CVT, and they are really good. I really don't see a need of camera at this point. The sound alerts help a lot compared to just the visual. Mine cost 6.5K in Bangalore and comes with Honda 1 year warranty.

[vsrivatsa]

Originally Posted by harry10

After consultation with few people who had used both sensors and camera I am getting only the sensors installed as they should be sufficient. Costing me 4500 here.
Get alloys from outside. In 20k you will get very good ones.
We went with Hdfc as my dad has a savings account there. Getting all the benefits mentioned below + low interest rate in comparison to all other banks. Imo you should try to get a good deal from the bank in which you already have an account. Process is fast and hassle free.

I just checked on the website, HDFC does not seem to be too friendly towards pre-payment and foreclosure of loan and they say you can pre-pay only once a year: URL
Not sure if what they have on the website in the section "New Car Loans Interest Rates & Charges" has changed.

[DoctorKK]

Friends, test drove the Honda city today( finally!!) The experience was nothing less than great!! It was a SV diesel model MT. There are two showrooms here in trivandrum ,one established and the other relatively new. Though I contacted both of them yesterday,the new one was prompt enough to contact me again and book a ride for today itself. Drove around the city only for around 3-4 Kms. I was impressed by the spacious interiors,refreshing cabin and the dials. The space was amazing and my dad who always prefers the front seat due to better space( he is 6'1") was very happy to be at the back. The drive was very comfortable,it starts with a very nice sound. There is not much turbo lag and the car picks up quickly and responds swiftly to the pedal. AC was pretty effective too and the touch screen was cool to operate. I did a couple of enthusiastic overtaking maneuvers to test how the car responds and I was not disappointed at all. Cabin noise I guess was acceptable, definitely less than Vento and comparable to Verna.

Intentionally put the car into a couple of ditches and the suspension was good. My wife took the wheel for sometime and she missed a hump at a decent speed. The car did not bottom out and I was happy to note that!! She was very comfortable and happy with the drive and gave her approval instantly. SV variant was impressive and I think accessories of V variant like alloys,camera,fog lights etc can be added later by honda dealership itself.

Following the drive,there was a good discussion with the Honda guy and with all info I had gathered from various forums on Team BHP plus the bargaining skills I have acquired from my mother,I tried my level best to get some discounts or free accessories from him. He has promised to offer me some discount and insisted I book the car immediately. I have played the waiting game as of now. Told him to get me in writing all that he would offer me and then I would 'decide' after discussing with the other dealer in town. I was definitely impressed by the guy's perseverance although his product is selling like hot cakes!!
Just keeping my fingers crossed for what he has to offer me.


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[harry10]

Originally Posted by vsrivatsa

I just checked on the website, HDFC does not seem to be too friendly towards pre-payment and foreclosure of loan and they say you can pre-pay only once a year: URL
Not sure if what they have on the website in the section "New Car Loans Interest Rates & Charges" has changed.

Don't go with the website blindly. They offered us all this. Probably cos of existing relationship with the bank. In any case one must go with the bank giving the best deal.

[vsrivatsa]

Originally Posted by DoctorKK

The space was amazing and my dad who always prefers the front seat due to better space( he is 6'1") was very happy to be at the back. The drive was very comfortable,it starts with a very nice sound. There is not much turbo lag and the car picks up quickly and responds swiftly to the pedal. AC was pretty effective too and the touch screen was cool to operate. I did a couple of enthusiastic overtaking maneuvers to test how the car responds and I was not disappointed at all. Cabin noise I guess was acceptable, definitely less than Vento and comparable to Verna.

Yes, on the space front, Honda has equaled the Sunny/Scala twins which had set the bar for this segment. People say the backseat of the City is comparable to a Merc now.

Originally Posted by DoctorKK

Intentionally put the car into a couple of ditches and the suspension was good. My wife took the wheel for sometime and she missed a hump at a decent speed. The car did not bottom out and I was happy to note that!! She was very comfortable and happy with the drive and gave her approval instantly.

Yes, the low Ground Clearance Problem has been effectively solved by Honda. This was a top item on my checklist as well when I test drove the car before purchase.

Originally Posted by DoctorKK

I was definitely impressed by the guy's perseverance although his product is selling like hot cakes!! Just keeping my fingers crossed for what he has to offer me.

Hoping you get a great deal All the Best!

Originally Posted by harry10

Don't go with the website blindly. They offered us all this. Probably cos of existing relationship with the bank. In any case one must go with the bank giving the best deal.

Yes, makes sense.